Fo r Yo u Wi l l Be Mostly i n Ete rnity Precedin pa es a nd cover : I M g g invite you to join me , John uir wrote to the ro u nd the w o r d a o me “ ’ A l , H lfD e R E 1 87 1 emin nt alph Waldo merson in , in a month s is th e ide n tifying symb o l of N e I n workshop with ature in the high t mples of the Yose mite Na tio na l Park . th e se v ie ws y o u w itne ss Ha lf great Sierra Crown beyond our holy Yosemite . It o m e ro m G ac ie r Po in t e D f l , will cost you nothing save the tim and very little of wit m assive El Capitan in $ h E e . that , for you will be mostly in t rnity Muir , the th e o re r o u nd and ro m f g , f pioneering conservationist and naturalist , had gravi ose mite a e res e c tive . Y V ll y , p ly tate d 1 868 e Th e c o ve r sh o ws a dista n t to Yosemite in as a sheeph rder and e - f- all - Ha lfDo m e aglo w fro m th e stay d on as sawyer and j ack o trades for Yosem F - M o u r ile Trail to Gla c ie r ite Valley innkeeper and guide James Mason Hutch Po in t . M ings . John uir and Yosemite : It was love at first M sight , and the energy appeared to be mutual . uir enjoyed a spiritual fusion and personal ide ntity with “ N Yosemite . o temple made with hands can com E pare with Yosemite . very rock in its walls seems to glow with life . Some lean back in maj e stic repose ; others , absolutely sheer or nearly so for thousands of e feet , advance b yond their companions in thought ful attitudes , giving welcome to storms and calms e alike , seemingly conscious , yet heedl ss of every n m imm o . o v a thing going about them Awful in ste , ble majesty , how softly these mountain rocks are adorned and how fine and reassuring the company $ L — . M they keep ife , personality , consciousness uir found the se qualities in what most perceived as “ ’ inanimate nature . You ll find me rough as the $ “ h e rocks , wrote to a friend , and about the same color granite . No r did Yosemite disappoint Emerson : This val ley is the only place that comes up to th e brag about $ ’ e e it , and xce ds it , he said . The philosopher s journal : haltingly records In Yosemite , grandeur of these mountains perhaps unmatched in the globe ; for here they strip themselves like athletes for exhibition and stand perpendicular granite walls , showing their entire height , and wearing a liberty cap of snow on E ’ the he ad . merson s admiration must have pleased M e uir , whos life seemed predicated on the eastern ’ “ sage s dictum : We must trust the perfection of the creation so far as to be lieve that whate ve r curiosity the order of things has awakened in our minds , the $ orde r of things can satisfy . Behind the intrepid John Muir at this time in his life lay his solo walk of miles from Indiana to the G ulf of Me xico . Behind lay his abandoned e care r as an inventor , his brief studies at the Univer sit o f . y Wisconsin , and his Wisconsin farm boyhood To acquaintances , to family , and even to supportive close friends , this loomed as a formless period for M . R uir , indeed for all of society in that day eligion and science face d a new and jarring parting of the Th e e th e asc en ways . ris of evolutionary theory and d e nc e of new geological theories battered the -o ld centuries religious paradigm , particularly in uni v e rsitie s th e . e and professions Sudd nly , no one knew quite how to view th e world . John Muir was , in fact , finding out how to view it . - If his long distance wanderings , and then his Yosem e ite forays , seemed formless , th y were nonetheless M M ’ formative . ore than a search for knowledge , uir s “ was a vision quest ; h e was developing his glacial $ e M eye as he called it . The Sierra p aks , uir realized , “ e Inc o m wer mountain fountains , watering first the $ parable Valley of Yosemite and then the agric ul ’ M tural plenitude of California s Central Valley . uir envisioned the Central Valley as a “ solar gold lake flowing out of Sierran springs and see ps . The giant - e sequoias , with sponge like root syst ms , similarly he ld precious water for timed release as th e life f ’ blood o California s agriculture . Muir’ s was an early and profoundly influential H e . ecological vision . saw the universe as flow Although he published statements of this pe rspe c tive 1 5 years before similar stateme nts appeare d in M e e scientific literature , uir has not r ceived prop r P credit for them . erhaps the experie nces he de scribed ih his articles were judged to o inte nse ly e personal to mbody sci e ntific the ory . Fo r Yo u Wi l l Be Mostly i n Ete rnity Precedin pa es a nd cover : I M e g g invite you to join me , John uir wrot to the ro u nd the w o r d a o m e “ ’ A l , H lfD e R E 1 87 1 emin nt alph Waldo merson in , in a month s is th e ide n tifying sym b o l of N e I n workshop with atur in the high temples of the Yose m ite Na tio na l Park . th e se v ie ws y o u witne ss Ha lf great Sierra Crown beyond our holy Yosemite . It o m e ro m G ac ie r Po in t D f l , will cost you nothing save the time and very little of w it m assive El Capitan in $ h E . M that , for you will be mostly in ternity uir , the th e o re r o u nd and ro m f g , f pioneering conservationist and naturalist , had gravi ose m ite a e re s e c tive . Y V ll y , p ly tate d 1 868 e e Th e c o ve r sh o ws a distan t to Yosemite in as a sh pherder and - f- ll - Ha lfDo m e aglo w fro m the stayed on as sawyer and jack o a trades for Yosem F - M o u r ile Trail to Gla c ie r ite Valley innkeeper and guide James Mason Hutch Po in t . M ings . John uir and Yosemite : It was love at first M sight , and the energy appeared to be mutual . uir enjoyed a spiritual fusion and personal ide ntity with “ N Yosemite . o temple made with hands can com E pare with Yosemite . very rock in its walls seems to glow with life . Some lean back in maj e stic repose ; others , absolutely sheer or nearly so for thousands of e feet , advance b yond their companions in thought ful attitudes , giving welcome to storms and calms e e alike , se mingly conscious , yet heedl ss of every n n m imm o . o v a thing goi g about them Awful in ste , e ble maj sty , how softly these mountain rocks are adorn e d and how fine and reassuring the company $ L — . M they keep ife , personality , consciousness uir found th e se qualities in what most perceived as “ ’ inanimate nature . You ll find me rough as the $ “ h e rocks , wrote to a friend , and about the same color granite . No r did Yosemite disappoint Eme rson : This val ley is the only place that comes up to the brag about $ ’ e it , and xceeds it , he said . The philosopher s journal : haltingly records In Yosemite , grandeur of these mountains perhaps unmatched in the globe ; for here they strip themselves like athletes for exhibition and stand perpendicular granite walls , showing their e ntire height , and wearing a liberty cap of snow on E ’ the h e ad . merson s admiration must have pleased M e uir , whos life seemed predicated on the eastern ’ “ sage s dictum : We must trust the perfection of the creation so far as to beli e ve that whatever curiosity the order of things has awakened in our minds , the $ order of things can satisfy . B e hind the intrepid John Muir at this time in his life lay his solo walk of miles from Indiana to th e G ulf of Me xico . Behind lay his abandoned e e car r as an inventor , his brief studies at the Univer sit . y of Wisconsin , and his Wisconsin farm boyhood To acquaintances , to family , and even to supportive e clos friends , this loomed as a formless period for R M . uir , indeed for all of society in that day eligion and science face d a new and jarring parting of the e e ways .